One upgrade done! One to go...the OAK I will keep it simple!

[bostonfan49]

I have a company called (Brickliners) coming out to give me a free estimate to drill a 3+" hole in my chimney to accommodate what will probably be a 16 to 20" metal ducting making up my OAK on my M55. My only question has to do with cold air coming in through the pipe and outside around the pipe. So when the stove is off, cold air comes through the OAK into the stove creating my first overnight pellet freezer. I can deal with this because of all the seals, most of the cold stays inside the stove. But...behind the stove and my surround, that area I would think would get freezing cold because the OAK pipe would be chilling that whole area and......coming into the house? Then there is the fact that the overnight temp in the house doesn't get bellow 58/59 because my oil boiler kicks in overnight ( the only time it's on for an appreciable amount of time) So, I am wondering if an uninsulated OAK will cause me to burn more oil overnight????? Condensation? Someone mentioned the black rubber tape. What about a double insulated stove pipe? Any easy answer greatly appreciated. Bill

 

[flynfrfun]

Silicone around the pipe so that it is sealed and won't let any cold air behind the fireplace. I did this last summer and notice a huge difference. I used to have a cold draft coming in from behind the stove when it was off. Now, I don't have a draft and it is the same temp as the house air.

I think you are worrying too much about nothing when you talk about the cold OAK pipe somehow refrigerating the air. The main thing is to make sure you don't introduce a leak for cold air to come in from outside with the hole that the OAK goes thru. Otherwise, the OAK will not contribute any more cooling effect than all the exhaust piping.

Another thing...have you thought about how to disconnect/connect the OAK when you pull the stove out on it's rails for maintenance? I have mine set up so that it goes straight out from the stove thru the wall. Then I just have to disconnect the termination outside the house and it will slide inside with the stove. I hooked a string to the end of the pipe so that I could pull it back thru the wall when I slide the stove back in.

 

[BradH70]

I agree with flynffrfun, just make sure all the joints are sealed so that no cold air will come in. The pipe itself will not cause your house temps to be lower and cause the oil furnace to run more. Think of your clothes dryer vent, it probably has more of a chance of letting cold air into the house then your OAK will.

As far as condensation, some people have insulated there OAK pipe, but if it is not done properly the insulation could allow the condensation to build up inside the oak, freeze and cause an air block. Others have just placed a towel under the OAK pipe to absorb the water drips from the condensation.

Is there a reason why you don't run your stove at night? You would save lots of dollars running the pellet stove at night versus the oil furnace.

 

[bostonfan49]

Thanks Flynfrfun. Confused...you mention about siliconing around the pipe on the exterior of the fireplace but then you "Pull the pipe through" How can you do that if it's siliconed? Also if the hole is only slightly larger than the pipe, isn't it hard to line up and pull through with the string? I guess I have a hard time visualizing it. Thanks, Bill

 

[jtakeman]

If the OAK sealed to the stove, There should not be any noticable drafts or air leaks. Only thing I notice on a windy day is my flapper making some noise. The OAK tube gets cold, but you don't feel any cold air once you move a foot away from it.

Condensation will be minimal. Where that happens is warm area's the cold air inside the pipe cools the warm air. The colder air behind you stove will have less of an effect on that issue. Don't use the rubber tape. The OAK also has to be heat rated JIC. I'd look for a wrap that has at least a similar to the vent pipe. An OAK can become an exhaust under the right conditions. Safety first!

The location yours will be in is masonary and water shouldn't be to big of a deal there. I really woundn't worry about it much. My OAK in my warm basement and has never left any standing water. It gets a wee bit damp or a little frosty. I just placed an aluminum tray under it JIC is all. I've yet to ever see any water in it.

 

[bostonfan49]

Thanks and Yippy Skippy ( sorry about that) I am excited because it looks a lot simpler and closer to becoming a reality. I still need to hear from flynfrfun on this string and guiding the pipe back into the hole after cleaning/maintenance. I am realizing that I think there are several ways to do this, I guess it's what's the easiest as far as future movement of the stove. I think I am all set on the insulation/condensation part. I can always revisit later. Bill. Oh....why we dont' run the stove overnight. A whole bunch of reasons. First, we like a cool sleeping temp 62/65 and so we have no need to keep the downstairs warm overnight. Second, the safeguards and reliability of a pellet stove, I just don't have the total trust or confidence in a pellet stove. We both hate gas as we witnessed first hand the total destruction of our neighbors house, (vacation house) directly across the street but hidden by trees.This was the classic BOOM, and all that was left was splinters. To this day, I don't even like to go into a house with gas anything. So our M55 comes on at 5AM and heats the entire downstairs to approx 72/73, then from 7AM to 9:45PM keeps the downstairs at around 70/71....unless we both go out. The downstairs T-Stat is set 4 degrees cooler than the stove so it will rarely go on. Yeah, we burn a little oil overnight but not much. We have had one oil delivery since October (and weeks before the stove) and all we took as of the 19th of December was 49 gallons of oil! Having fun! Bill

 

[flynfrfun]

Bill,
I was mistaken in my earlier post. On my setup, I didn't silicone it because of what you said...I've got to be able to pull the pipe thru the hole. What I did was ran some insulation up close to the OAK so that the air couldn't come thru so easily. A better solution would be to apply some weatherstripping on the base of the termination so that it seals to the wall when I screw it down. I haven't seen any talk about clearances to combustibles when it comes to OAKs even though it has to be metal pipe. So, I guess, my insulation could possibly be a fire hazard if the OAK got really hot. I'd better follow my own advice and install the weatherstrip and move that insulation. :gulp:

My OAK was actually simple and cheap...3" flex dryer line and a plastic 3"-4" adapter that adapts it to the termination which is 4". So the hole in the wall is 4". I have found that with that big of a hole, I can slide the stove back. Then go outside and reach thru the hole and pull the OAK pipe out . Since it's flexible, it will just bend a little when the stove is pushed back. Then I push the termination onto the adapter (friction fit) and screw the termination back to the wall. One of these days I need to take pics and post.